Software clients operating on or in conjunction with a computer system are often used to access data stored at a server with which the computer system can establish communications, such as through a local area network (LAN). In many instances, the data on the server is accessible only through a particular operating protocol, which in turn tends to limit a user to a particular client. Similarly, a particular type of client is typically configurable to operate with only certain types of servers or operating protocols.
In an email system, for example, in which users have associated mailboxes on a mail server, a particular operating protocol, and often a particular messaging client, is required for email access. According to one common email implementation, Microsoft Outlook is used as the messaging client to access mailboxes or accounts on a Microsoft Exchange server. However, Outlook does not work well with other mail servers, such as those for Hotmail email accounts. Although Outlook Express can be configured to work with Hotmail email accounts, it cannot access email accounts associated with an Exchange server.
Various prior art approaches have been developed for providing communications between systems and devices using different operating protocols. One such approach is set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 6,615,212 to Dutta et al., in which a transcoding proxy server receives a request for content from a client machine. The transcoding proxy server retrieves the content from an originating server. The retrieved content is provided in a first format type. In response to a determination that an increase in efficiency would be obtained by allowing the client to process the content in the first format type prior to transcoding the content into a second format type, the transcoding proxy server sends the content to the client in the first format type.
Furthermore, in response to a determination that the client does not have content processing software for processing the content in the first format, the transcoding proxy server sends content processing software for the first format type along with the content in the first format type to the client. The transcoding proxy server then transcodes the content from the first format type into the second format type and sends the content in the second format to the client.
Despite such prior art approaches, further protocol translation and/or conversion functionality may be desirable in certain applications.